The Crew Dragon spacecraft, which will take a billionaire businessman and three guests into orbit later this year, has undergone a significant and unforeseen design upgrade, according to SpaceX.
Elon Musk shared a tweet from SpaceX on Tuesday, March 30, showing a Crew Dragon spacecraft with a glass dome at the capsule's top, providing astronauts with a panoramic view of space.
Probably most “in space” you could possibly feel by being in a glass dome https://t.co/SOAIzxVGgX
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 30, 2021
The Verge said NASA's Commercial Crew Program awarded SpaceX a $2.6 billion contract to build Crew Dragon. The space agency said the window's installation does not require NASA safety approval.
SpaceX Crew Dragon Glass Dome
According to Teslarati, SpaceX created a spectacular window add-on for Crew Dragon is modeled after the well-known "Cupola" (Italian for dome) designed by the European Space Agency (ESA) and mounted on the International Space Station (ISS) in 2010.
SpaceX decided that the spacecraft's docking adapter could be entirely eliminated due to renewed commercial interest in free-flying Crew Dragon missions.
While the ISS Cupola looks a lot like the glass dome on Crew Dragon, the two windows are just identical in that they're both space-based viewing windows. Beyond that, the Dragon Dome is closer to the Cupola's ultimate realization than the Cupola was to ESA engineers.
The Cupola's central circular window has an uninterrupted diameter of 80 cm (2.6 ft). The entire assembly has a total internal diameter of 2m (6.6 ft) and a depth (the 'height' of the conical windowed area) of about 50 cm, with an approximately 2:1 ratio of structure and structural support material to glass (1.6 ft).
Who are the Members of Inspiration4 Mission
The world's first all civilian mission called Inspiration4 revealed the final crew members on Tuesday.
The all-civilian spaceflight will be led by Jared Isaacman, the 37-year-old founder and CEO of online payment processing company Shift4 Payments.
Isaacman collaborated with St. Jude Children's Research Hospital and held a series of competitions to find the final two participants who would travel with him into space.
Hayley Arceneaux, a medical assistant at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, joins Isaacman. She will serve as the hospital's ambassador and occupy the mission's "Hope" seat. The 29-year-old bone cancer survivor is now on track to become America's youngest astronaut.
Chris Sembroski, a data engineer for Lockheed Martin, is the third member to join them. He's a longtime science and space exploration fan who previously served as a Space Camp counselor, leading students on virtual space flights.
Sian Proctor, a geoscientist and science communication professional who has served on four NASA-funded analog space missions, completes the team by occupying the "Prosperity" position on the mission.
Read also: Reusable Rocket Phenomenon: Who Are Other Rocket Startups Joining the Race for Space Travel?
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